Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCB) are a worldwide contamination problem. They are extremely stable and as such, very long lived in the environment. The end result is that PCBs tend to bioaccumulate throughout the food chain and a great deal of research and regulations have been dedicated to their study.

Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) are found throughout the environment and are recognized as a serious health threat. They accumulate in animals and plants and become more concentrated as they progress up the food chain. PCBs can be found in the fatty tissues of human populations in all industrial countries, and they can be passed from mother to fetus through the placenta and to an infant through breast milk. They have been introduced into the environment mainly through the use of Aroclor products.

The City of Fort Worth, Water Department conducted an evaluation of the Atlantic™ solid phase extraction (SPE) C18 disks using EPA Method 608. This application note describes the procedure to determine low ppb levels of organochlorine pesticides and PCBs in wastewater. This procedure used methylene chloride as the primary extraction solvent, followed by a hexane solvent exchange. Extracts were then analyzed by GC/ECD using a pressure pulse injection technique.

Method 1668A is used for determining the level of chlorinated biphenyl congeners by high resolution gas chromatography with high resolution mass spectrometry (HRGC/HRMS). For aqueous samples (samples containing less than 1% solids) – Stable isotopically labelled analogs of the toxic PCB’s are spiked into a 1L sample, and the sample is extracted using the Biotage® Horizon 4790 Automated Extraction System along with the Atlantic™ C18 solid phase extraction (SPE) disk.
Samples are then dried and concentrated using the DryVap® Automated Drying and Concentrating System with DryDisk® technology.

About Biotage

Biotage is a global Life Science company that develops innovative and effective solutions for separation within organic and analytical chemistry, as well as for industrial applications. Biotage is listed on NASDAQ Stockholm